RIL to raise up to $880 mn today through own share sale

17 Sep 2009 Evaluate

Reliance Industries may raise today as much as $880 million (Rs 4,244 crore), selling its own shares which were in a trust so far, as the company may be planning to acquire a petroleum asset overseas taking advantage of fallen valuations, according to sources.  The company may also use the proceeds to invest in expanding oil exploration which may need around $3 billion.

The company has mandated DSP Merrill Lynch and Citigroup to sell as many as 1 crore shares of India’s largest listed company at Rs 2,125 per share, a 2.7% discount to yesterday’s closing price. The company retains the right to sell an additional 1 crore shares.

Petroleum Trust ended up owning shares in RIL, after the company decided to monetise the shares it was getting out of a share swap merger with Reliance Petroleum in 2002 instead of extinguishing them. The Trust holds 10.47 crore of RIL’s shares, or 6.65% of RIL’s capital, a part of which is being sold now. RIL set up for the second time a company with the name Reliance Petroleum and merged that too with itself in 2009, but decided to extinguish the shares arising out of the latest merger.

There can be many reasons for share sale, it may be looking at a major acquistion globally as there are many assets available abroad. Sources also say that RIL is gearing up for $9-billion acquisition abroad. The acquisition theory is gaining ground, since the company does not need cash now. This 1-crore share sale is only the first tranche, also Rs 15,000 crore from the warrants conversion last year is lying idle in fixed deposit, fetching interest. RIL may be preparing for a war chest. Also RIL may probably believe that the stock is appropriately valued now and there may not be an upside to it and it may be the best time to sell.

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Reliance Industries Share Price

1300.05 -1.60 (-0.12%)
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